Classifier.



P. ARGALL.

CLASSIFIER.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 17, 1911.

l., )Patented Nov. 19, 1912.

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P. ARGALL.

CLASSIFIBR.

APPLIUATION FILED JULY 17, 1911.

Patented, Nov. 19, 19712.

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PHILIP ARGALL, OF DENVER, COLORADO.

CLASSIFIER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented NomvllQ, MM2.

Application sled July 17, 1911. serial Nq. 639,051.

ratus for classifying or separating, slime' from sand. In anv` apparatus of this character the neness of the slime is largely dependent uponthe character of the Weir employed, as if the'weir is short the water and slime fromthe settlin tank will flow thereover withfsuch velocity that therewill be carried thereover some coarse slime and even soV some fine sand, while when a lo Weir is utilized, the water flows thereover in a thin film and at a slow speed so that only the finest slime is'carried over the weir.

The object of the present invention is the provision of an apparatus of this character which is so constructed as to aford a very long vweir over which the suspended slimes areowed from the settling ortion, so that with the apparatus slimes ci) great ineness may be obtained.

A further object of the present invention is the provision in an apparatus of this character of a Weir for the settling portion of the"classifier, the lengt-h of which may be adjusted thus rendering it possible by varying the length of such Weir, to obtain with the apparat-us, slimes of any desired degree of ineness Other objects of the invention will be apparent from the detailed description hereinafter when read in connection with the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein a convenient embodiment of the invention is illustrated and wherein like characters of reference refer to similar parts in the several views. v

In the drawings Figure l is a top plan 'l view of the improved classier; Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sect-ion thereof; Fig. 3 1s a cross section on line of Fig. 2;'Fig. t is an enlargedcross sectional View showing the settling tank, the overilowilaunder, and the Weir; Fig. 5 is a cross section through the wall of the settling tank showing the dam in elevation, and Fig. 6 is a cross section through the wall of the settling tank, taken at the overlapping portions of two sections of the dam.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, A designates a suitable base or support upon which the various parts of the classifier or separator are Mounted upon the support or base A adja- Ecent one end thereof is a settling tank B which is in the present instance, circular in cross section. Mounted upon the support A is a suitable frame work C which serves to support the major portion of the U-shaped trough D, which is arranged at an angle of about fifteen degrees to t-he supporting base A and the lower end of which projects into 'the wall of the circular settling tank. B.

The portions of the side walls of the trough D adjacent the settling tank B are extended above the level ofithe top of said settling -tank so that when the settling tank is full of liquid, such liquid will also extend into the lower portion of the trough. Mounted within the trough D and extending the full length thereof'are a pair of oppositely disposed solid or ribbon spiral conveyers E E, the lower ends of which project into the settling tank B. The conveyers E E are carried by suitable shafts, the lower ends of which are journaled in step bearings e e conveniently carried by the wall of the settling tank B and the upper ends of which .are journaled in suitable bearings secured to the supporting frame C beyond the upper ends of the trough -D. The conveyers E E are intergeared to rotate in opposite directions vthrough the medium of intermeshing gears E E which are keyed to the respective shafts thereof. Anyl suitable means may be employed fordriving the conveyers and in' the form of the invention illustrated in the accompanying drawings, I have shown the shaft of one of suoli conveyors provided with a large bevel gear E2 which is adapted to be engaged by a suitable pinion E3 mounted on a power shaft which may be operated in any desired manner.

supported.

In practice the conveyers are adapted to be rotated very slowly, conveniently from 3 to 8 revolutions per minute. The shafts of t-he conveyers E E are conveniently arranged parallel to the bottom wall of the trough D and such shafts are so positioned that the conveyers will be spaced a slight dist-ance from the bott-om of such conveyer to enable a portion of the sand carried upwardly by the conveyers from the settling tank B to form a bed or bottom in the trough conforming to the conveyers and over which the main vbody of the material may feed in its course upward and onward. On the bottomof the trough D and extending the full length thereof are secured a pair of angle irons' d d which are located just outside of the edges of the conveyers E E and which are of relatively short height to constitute with the side walls of the trough, overfiow channels d.

In addition to the bearings provided for the ends of the conveyer shafts, means are also conveniently provided for support-in such shafts intermediate the ends thereo In the form of the invention illustrated in the drawings, the means provided for this purpose comprisesa pair of -metal beams F F which are secured to the upper edges of the trough D adjacent the lower end thereof and which extends transversely of said trough. Positioned bet-Ween the beams E F and supported thereby so as to depend therefrom, are a pair of U-shaped hangers F F which embrace suitable boxings f f for the intermediate portions of the conveyer shaft. The U-shaped hangers vmay be supported in any Way from the beams F F so that they may be adjusted vertically to take up any Wear on the conveyer shafts for the boxes j' f. In the form shown in the drawings, the arms of the U-shaped hangers pass through plates f which are rigidly secured to the undersides of the beams F F and through cap plates f2 f2 which Iit over the tops of the beams F F and are held in position by suitable securing nuts which are threaded upon the upper ends of the U-shaped hangers F F and engage the tops of said cap plates.

Obviously by adjusting the nuts on the upper ends of the U-shaped hangers, such hangers may be adjusted longitudinally. To normally prevent rotary movement of the boxes f f in the hangers F F bolts F2 vF2 are employed which are positioned between the beams F F and the lower ends of which engage suit-able recesses formed in the upper portions of the boxes f f. The bolts F2 F2 pass through suitable openings in the cap plates f2 f2 and also through nuts which are seated in vsquared openings formed in the'unders'ide of said cap plates and normally restupon the tops of the beams F F. It will thus be seen that the bolts F2 F2' may be adjusted with the hangers F F to take up any wear on the conveyer shafts or the boxes f The boxes f f are conveniently provided with sockets in the undersides thereof which are similar to those in the upper sides of said boxes which are engaged by the lower ends of the bolts F2 F2, so that when the upper portions of said boxes become worn, they may be reversed in the hangers F F.

Extending transversely across the lower.

end of the trough D is a feed launder or trough Gr which is adapted to receive the pulp from the stamp batteries, such launder or trough being provided in its forward Wall with a series of openings g arranged in the lower portion of said wall, from which the pulp is discharged into the trough of the classifier. The feed launder G may be'positioned over any .part ofthe trough which constitutes a continuation. of the settling tank B. In practice, however, I prefer to posit-ion such feed launder at some distance from the connection of the trough with the settling tank so that the heavy stands will not enter the settling tank but will be pushed upward by the screw co-nveyers as fast as they fall thereon, thus leaving the tank for the free settling of the finest sands. v

Positioned across the lower end of the trough D is an angularly disposed 'deflectorlr plate D which is supported in any suitable manner from the upperportion of't-heside Walls of the trough.

Secured upon the exterior of the'settling tank B and extending around the upper edge thereof is an overflow trough or launder H. The trough or launder H is conveniently' U-shaped in cross section, and the ends of the trough terminate adjacent the connection of the trough D withthe settling4 tankA B. In the present embodiment of the invention the overflow trough or launder H is supported upon an angle iron H which 1s secured upon the exterior of the settling tank B and extends therefrom,` such overflow trough or launder being slightly spaced from the overow tank by suitable spacing blocks and rigidly secured thereto by fastening bolts passing through said vspacing blocksv and the walls of the overiow launder and settling tank. The space between the settling tank B and the inner wall of the overow launder H is'conveniently filled with concrete, such concrete filling, however, terminating short of the upper edges of the.

walls of the overiow launder and settling y tank, thus forming a channel betweenthe wall ofthe overflow launder and the settling tank. Seated vwithin the channel thus formed and extending for the full length thereofis a weir I, the upper edge of which is truly level and projects above the upper edgesof the settling tank B and launder H. The Weir I 1s conveniently formed of a wooden ishighly desirable,

, slow rate,

strip which is of less thickness than the width of the channel in which it is seated and such weir is rigidly secured inv said channel by means of suitable packing z' which is interposed between the lower portion of the weir and the wall of the settling chamber B. There is thus formed above the packing z' a channel between theadjacent faces of the weir and the wall of the settling chamber, and in the channel thus formed is removably secured a dam K. The 'dam K is of such a width that when secured in position in its channel the upper edge thereof will project above the upper edge of the portion of the weir I adjacent thereto, so that it will be seen that such portion of the weir I as the dam K overlies, will not be brought into use during the operation of the device. --In order that the operative length of the weir maybe adjusted to any desired extent, the dam K is preferably formed of a plurality of overlapping sections K. The sections K of the dam may be overlapped to any desired extent to adjust the length of such dam as may be desired, and as lmany of such sections may be utilized, as may be found desirable. To facilitate adjustment of the sections K of the dam' in the channel at the top of the wall of the settling chamber, such sections are conveniently provided with set screws projecting from the upper portions thereof, which constitute handles permitting the ready adjustment of the sections 1n the channels. The sections .K of the dam fit in the channel rather snugly and the channel is of such a depth as to prevent tilting of such sections. If desired, means may be employed for positively locking the sections in the channel but no such means need necessarily be employed.

From the construction thus described it will be seen. that if the dam K is not utilized, the entire length of the weir will be effective, thus providing a very long Weir, which and in fact, is necessary when .av slime o-f a very fine mesh is to be obtained, as when Y ployed, the Water from the setting tank will flow thereover in a thin film at a very thus carrying only the finest slime. At times, however, when it is not desired to obtain slime of the greatest degree of fineness, it is desirable to operate the device with a-shorter weir and in this event, the dam K is utilized to cut oil' a portion of the Weir. lObviously by adjust-ing the dam to the desired extent, any desired amount of the weir can beicutout of operation and the operative portion ofthe Weir may be made as short as is found desirable.

This feature ofthe invention is an exceedingly important one as by varying the speed at which the conveyers are driven, and varying the operative length of the weir,

the machine can be so adjusted to give slime of any desired degree of fineness. It will also be noted that by reason of the substan tially circular form of weir employed, ap plicant is enabled to obtain a weir of great length in a comparatively small area. The overflow launder is provided with a suitable discharge opening H2 through which the slime is discharged.

In the operation of the improved classifier, the pulp composed of the crushed ore and cyanid solution from the stamp batteries or other crushing device, together with al suitable amount of water, is supplied through the feed launder G to the lower portion'of the trough D. which is in communication with the settling tank B and into which the water from the settling tank extends. This portion of the trough D really constitutes a part of the settling chamber of the apparatus, the remainder of the trough, in which no water from the settling tank extends, constituting an unwatering portion. As the material is fed into the lower portion of the trough D, and from thence into the settling tank B, it will be agitated by reason of the const-ant actuation of the spiral conveyers E E and the greater portion of the slime will be separated from the sand and flow over the edge of the Weir I and into the overfiowtrough H. As the sand settles to the bottom of the tank B and the settling portion of the trough D, a sand bed is gradually formed and progressively built upward upon the inclined bottom of the trough, the upper surface of which is complementary to the contour of the conveyers. As this bed or bottom is formed the main or movable body of sand with its confined slime, is forced upwardly by the spiral conveyers, into the unwatering portion of the trough. During this operation the conveyers are constantly changing and displacing the sand particles which causes the slime to be squeezed out of the sands and to be returned to the settling tank by thechannels formed between the flanges d d on the bottom of the trough D D' and the Walls of such trough. This squeezing out or extracting'out of slime from the moving body of sand is accomplished by the agltation of the body under the influence of the spiral conveyers, and owing to the pressure upon the body created by the orce which moves the same forward and upwardly, resisted by the inertia of the body itself. The slime freed from the upper end of the trough D, from whence it is conveyed in any suitable manner into the leaching tanks, where 1t is treated in thewell known manner.l or the sands may be returned to a tube mill or other fine grmding machine for further reduction. In

the all-sliming process a classifier of the character herein described and a tube mill sand is discharged many changes may be made to the Aform and construction therein shown without de.

parting from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

I-claim: Y 1. In a classifier of the ,character described, the combination with a settling chamber having a-weir at its edge, of an unwatering trough leading from the settling chamber, of -a 'size inj cross-section at its` lower end less than the width of the chamber, a conveyer entering the settling chamber and passing through the trough, -a -eed at the lower end of the trough, and .a del'lector interposed between the feed and 'the settling chamber, substantially as described.

2. In a classifier of the character described, the combination with a settling chamber h-aving an overflow Weir at its edge, of an unwatering. trough. entering the side of the settling chamber, of a size in cross-section at its lower end less than the width of the chamber, a plurality of oppositely operating conveyers extendingtoward.

. the bottom of the settling chamber and through .the trough, a feed adjacent the lower end of the trough, and a deflector positioned at a point between the trough and ,the wein-for the purposes'stated. y 3. In a classifier of thecharacter described, the combination with a substan.

tially circular-'settling chamber having al trough surrounding the same onthe `outer side, an unwatering conductor trough lead.- ing from the separating chamber of al size in cross-sectionat its lower end less thanthe width ofthe chamber, a conveyer- .extendingsettling-chamber, of an unwatering trough leading therefrom of a size in cross-,section at itsI lower end less than .the width ofthe chamber, a Weir vat'theedge ofthe settling chamber, a conveye'rjlocatedwithinithetrough, and projecting --into Athe ksettling chamber, and a feed for the settling cham'- ber located abovethelowerfend of the un-,

watering trough ,at a point in advance of the settling chamber whereby'the eed will be deposited in the liquid contained in the lower end of the trough,-for'.-the4 purposes speciied. -.f v

wams

5.11.11 'a ,classifier ofthe character described, the combination with a settling chamber, .of an unwatering trough leading therefrom and of a size in cross-section at its lower end less than the width of the chamber, -an overflow weir for the chamber, a4 conveyer in the unwateringtrough and a feed for the chamber.

6. In a classifier of the character described, the combination with a settling chamber having a wei-r at its edge extending substantiallyl the length thereof, and aremovable -dam member adjustably supported at the edge of the settling chamber extending above the plane. of the Weir and of a length less than the length of the Weir.;-

7 In a classifier of .the character ldescribed, the combination with a settling chamber having an extended Weir at its v upper edge, of a removable sectional dam member supported at the ed e of the settling chamber and projecting a ove the plane of the Weir and of a length less than the length-of the Weir, substantially as described.y y

i8. In a classifier of the character dbscribed, a settling tank, anoverflow Atrough secured yupon-the exterior of said settling tank and extending .for a substantial distance :1;l'1erearound, said overiow trough bein spaced from said settling tank to provi e a channel therebetween, a Weir seated in the channel ibetween the overflow trough and' the vsettling tank, the upper edge of said Weir 4projecting above the upper edge of the settling tank, and a dam removably supported -1n said channel so as to overlie a portion of said weir, saidfdam being of a height to project -above' the upper edge of the weir. v

' 9'. In a classifier of the character described,- ay settling tank, an overflow trough .I

Asecured upon the exterior of said -settling tank and extending fora substantial distancetherearound, said overflow trough being spaced from said settlingtank to pro'- videl a channel therebetween, -a Weir seated in .the channel between the overiow trough i and the settling tank, the upper edge of said Weir projectingabove the upper edge of the settling tank, and a longitudinally vextensible dam ,seated in said channel and overlying a port-ion of said weir, said dam being j to project above the upper edgev ofz-'a-height of 'the Weir.

10. In -a classifier of the character de- I scribed, an annular settling tank, an overflowftrough secured to the exterior of said settling tank and extending for a substantial` distance' therearou'nd, said overiiow trough Vbeing `spaced from -the wall of 4 the settling tank, a'l-ling in the space between the overiiow trough and the Wall of the settling tank, said iilling terminating short of .the top l.ofthe settling tank to provide a.l channelbetween the upper portion In testimony whereof I ax my signature of the overflow trough and the wall of the in presence of two witnesses. settling tank, a weir supported in the channel thus formed and co-extensive therewith said weir being of a thickness to partially PHILIP ARGALL' fill the channel, and a dam removably sup- Witnesses:

ported in said/channel alongside of said Weir JOSEPH ARGALL,

and adapted to overlie a portion thereof. LILLIAN A. ARGALL. 

